At present, to eliminate solid contaminants from the fuel, several types of filtering paper elements are employed. These elements will trap solid contaminants but, are not capable of separating or eliminating water contained in the fuel.
It is known to employ separate water and solid contaminants filters and separators, manufactured as self-contained units, for removal of water and solid contaminants from diesel fuel. Use of such units involves inconvenience and loss of time, in that they have to be removed from their mounting position, and fuel lines and connections, clamps and bolts have to be removed in order to change filter elements, etc., for cleaning and maintenance purposes. Also they have to be assembled and installed back to their original location. Another inconvenience is that these units require replacement fuel filter elements specially made by their manufacturers that in some instances are not easy to obtain.
Now then, the apparatus of this invention avoids these disadvantages, is adaptable to any type of diesel or gasoline engines, in any type of applications: automotive, marine, industrial, construction, power plants, etc., being an important benefit that the device extends the life of fuel pumps, injectors and carburators and in particular the original fuel filter elements, by separating solids and water contaminants from the fuel.
Another advantage of the invention is that there is no need to discard the original filtering equipment, previously designed and recommended by the engine manufacturers.
Thus, it is an object of this invention to provide a compact and self-contained water and solid contaminants separator which is easy to install and remove from its mounting position by simply screwing or unscrewing it from its mounting head, which is and forms part of the apparatus.
In this way, it is possible to remove a separator clogged by dirt with a simple hand twist and install a new one, screwing it back to its mounting head, without the inconvenience of removing hoses, connections, bolts, clamps, etc.
It is a further object of this invention to provide in this manner, a "throw-away" type, water and solid contaminants separator.